ORCAA Board of Directors
OLYMPIC REGION CLEAN AIR AGENCY
2940 B Limited Lane NW
Olympia, Washington 98502
MEETING
July 11 , 2007
Members present:
Bob Beerbower, Grays Harbor County (Chair)
Ann Burgman, City of Lacey
Clay Harwood, Pacific County
Grant Munro, City of Port Angeles (Vice Chair)
Jeff Kingsbury, Thurston County
Ross Gallagher, Mason County
Bob MacLeod, Thurston County
Phil Johnson, Jefferson County
Members absent:
Legal Counsel: Fred Gentry, Bean & Gentry
Staff Present:
Richard Stedman, Executive Director, Robert Moody, Compliance Supervisor; Gordon Lance, Engineer; Lynn Harding, Administrative Services Manager; Dan Nelson, Public Information Officer and Debbie Moody, Recorder
The meeting was called to order at 10:05 am.
There was one addition to the Agenda; Vehicle Vandalism, under Directors Report. There were no omissions. Johnson moved approval of the amended Agenda. Harwood seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. Gallagher moved approval of the Consent Agenda. Munro seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Neil Tuggle re: Soil Key
Neil Tuggle stated he is appearing on behalf of his neighbors and friends on 160th out in Tenino. Tuggle thanked staff and the Board for their continued support but wanted it known that the situation is not getting any better. Tuggle stated Soil Keys doors were open during the weekend and the odors were strong. They continue to cook materials in the West Building and this was confirmed by Gordon Lance of ORCAA staff. According to the Regulatory Order issued June 15, Tuggle explained, they were to submit a plan for air capture in the East Building. Tuggle asked if there has been any response. Stedman stated we did receive a proposal from their consultants. The proposal did not meet the specifications of the Order, Stedman noted, and we have alerted them. Tuggle noted the Order states Soil Key must have a plan in order by a deadline and if not, ORCAA would require them cancel all deliveries of biosolids and feedstock. Tuggle noted they are continuing to receive deliveries. Stedman stated the Order limits their deliveries to 50 tons per day. The county also has placed a limit on their nitrogen containing materials to 50 tons per day. Soil Key has requested the limit be raised to 100 tons per day, and we have denied that request. Stedman noted we will be seeking an injunction through the court system. Tuggle asked what the timeline would be for the injunction. Stedman stated we don’t know, but we will keep the citizens out in the area aware of the status.
Tuggle wanted to let staff and the Board know that we (the citizens in the area) would have no problems letting Soil Key break down the large pile they have and move it into wind rows. If they could let us know when that is going to happen, we would be tolerant of the odors for that time period. Stedman appreciated their tolerance and noted staff has told Soil Key they would be allowed to do this. One other option would to just let the pile sit for 2 years until it completes decomposition. Breaking into the pile does allow the release of horrific odors; however the composting would go quicker and with fewer odors over the long run. Burgman asked how long that process would take. Stedman explained he would need to submit a Notice of Construction, or at the very least, come to us with a proposal explaining how he intends to break the pile apart. It could take several months.
Beerbower asked if the county permit allows Soil Key to have the pile. Stedman wasn’t sure but thought that it would not be allowed under the county permit. Beerbower felt it was important to move with the county on this as soon as possible. If Soil Key permit is due for renewal, what is stopping him from walking away and leaving this odor and mess behind? Stedman stated, it is our opinion that they need to stop accepting waste at this point, and process the material on site. Unfortunately, Soil Key can’t afford to not take waste. Stedman noted we have tried to work with Soil Key, but they aren’t very willing to work with us.
Tuggle noted one other issue that may arise—fires. Last year, Tuggle stated, there were several spontaneous fires on the property.
Doherty asked if the business could relocate to a less populated area. Macleod stated they could move, but it would have to go through further permitting, which is already an issue. They can not meet the regulations due to money issues, so moving the business is most likely not an option at this point.
Munro asked if the biosolids are coming from public facilities. Gordon Lance, ORCAA Engineer, stated that is correct. Munro asked if the public facilities could possibly be at risk as well. Stedman noted they can be at risk. Munro questioned whether or not the facilities have or should have been talking to Soil Key about their operation. Stedman stated the facilities have been and it just reinforces ORCAA’s opinion that the operator is not responsive to anyone. Stedman added we will probably make a recommendation to them to stop shipping to Soil Key.
Tuggle asked if ORCAA could deny them access to Soil Key. Stedman felt we could not deny them access, but we could possibly issue them a notice of violation. Stedman noted we would prefer to have a conversation with LOTT and explain to them the situation, noting they could receive a notice of violation for causing or allowing odors at the site.
Beerbower thanked Tuggle for coming to the meeting.
DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Compliance Update
Robert Moody, Compliance Supervisor, briefly went over the compliance sections accomplishments for the past month. R.Moody noted, besides Soil Key and Ocean Protein complaints, we have been receiving ongoing complaints regarding North Mason Fibre. Most of the counties are currently in a burn ban due to dry weather, so are workload in the burning area should decrease. R.Moody wanted to remind the Board that there is grant money available for the UGAs that came under the burn ban in January. Ecology’s Solid Waste group is working diligently to meet with those entities (county and cities this applies to) and we are willing to cooperate to our abilities as well. There is a $500,000 grant, statewide, for woodstove buyback programs and we intend to apply for monies. If we receive grant monies for this project we will be focusing on the Port Angeles area.
Stedman noted we will be contacting the City of Forks with regards to the grants for outdoor burning assistance. They have some unique problems in that area and we will be working with them to make sure they get their application into Ecology in a timely manner. Stedman stated we may look at using some in-kind contributions and monies from our School Bus funds. Stedman noted Eastern Washington is pushing hard to get as much funding as possible for the alternatives to burning grant.
As for the $500,000 woodstove money, Stedman continued, is not much money for the state. We estimated to completely pay for the cost of a change out would be approximately $2,500.00. We want to target problem areas and hopefully make a bigger impact. During this time, we will also be working on a burning campaign to educate people how to burn stoves correctly.
Beerbower asked about the $75,000.00 for the city of Hoquiam. Stedman stated there is a clause in their grant agreement stating they have to request the money no later than November 2008. We have to wait until that time to do anything with the money. We have had some conversations with them, months ago, but since then they have not requested the money.
ORCAA Permit Actions
Gordon Lance, Engineer, stated things have been quiet with regards to the permitting section. Lance noted Mark Goodin is attending Lasco’s source test. Lance noted that Lasco had been a problem source with regards to odors in the past, however they have installed additional controls and have been very proactive and we rarely receive complaints any more.
Education and Outreach
Dan Nelson, Public Information Officer, noted staff had prepared and mailed a flier to the residents near Soil Key, along with copies to the Board, Soil Key, and Fremont Dock. Nelson stated we are planning on doing a direct mailing to the UGA no burn areas that will focus on alternatives to burning. We have a new brochure that covers all the different types of outdoor burns. Each page covers a type of burn (residential, recreational, land clearing, etc.) and the regulations and requirements pertaining to them.
On the school bus funds, we have signed an agreement with the Port of Olympia and we will be retrofitting their log loaders and looking forward to significant reductions in particulate matter. Nelson stated if this goes well, we would like to move on to the other Ports and work with them in the same manner. We have issued a few press releases regarding weather and ozone impacts.
Vehicle Vandalism
Stedman wanted to let the Board know that one of our vehicles was vandalized in Port Angeles. From what we have been able to tell, the vandalism wasn’t directed at us. The car had been parked behind a bowling alley and someone took a bowling ball and threw it through both the front and back windows, and knocked off the mirrors. Our Port Angeles employee, Rita Cirulis, found the vehicle and was able to place a tarp over it to prevent additional rain damage. We will be exploring some options as far as either having Cirulis take the vehicle home or requesting permission to park our vehicle either at a county or city building.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
ORCAA Climate Change Principles
Stedman stated he is still working on the principles. Stedman explained he is working with Nelson, who is part of the Northwest Air Quality Communicators Group. The group is working together to gather the information and look at other counties that have adopted resolutions and find a good approach. Stedman thought he would have a draft for the next meeting.
Accounting Policy & Procedure - final
Stedman stated the Policy is now final. We had received several comments during the last meeting and incorporated several of them into the final document.
Kingsbury moved approval of the Accounting Policy and Procedures. Johnson seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
Soil Key Update
Stedman noted this item was covered during the public comment period. He did add that we will be discussing, with Gentry, the next steps with regards to proceeding with an injunction. Stedman stated he believes this operation could work, however, he is not convinced that the current operator can do it correctly.
NEW BUSINESS
FY 2007 final Budget Status Report
Stedman stated there is a copy of the final close out of the FY2007 budget. There were no significant changes from the draft last month. There was no action required of the Board.
Stedman noted we have been spending quite a bit of time up at Cheeka Peak, however, we are working with Ecology on the new network and if all goes well, we should only have to go up once a quarter to check on the site.
Stedman stated we are currently working with Lakeside Industries to establish a monitoring station in Nisqually valley. At the beginning of the permit processing, they had agreed to help pay for costs associated with the monitoring site, however, now that have their permit, they are not as willing to assist. We have estimated it will cost approximately $40,000.00 for the first year—which would include all the equipment as well. Subsequent years should be approximately $10,000.00. Our goal at this point is to get them to pay half.
Doherty, noting the assessments brought in were higher than budget, asked if ORCAA could delay the increase for this year. Stedman explained there is no increase this year, the increase occurred last year. The notifications for the assessments have been mailed and because the assessment is established in our budget, therefore we cannot change it at this point.
Stedman stated he would like to work on a different method for collecting assessments. Some agencies do a property tax and local contribution combination assessment. It is something we can look at. Puget Sound Clean Air Agency collects part of their assessment via the utility bills. They then have a $.60 per capita assessment they collect directly as we do. PSCAA’s Board just approved an increase in their assessment by $.10, which will be used to build a reserve fund for global warming projects in the future.
MOU w/Ecology Industrial Section re: Port Townsend Paper
Stedman explained he would like to get Board approval to proceed with this MOU. Port Townsend Paper has several issues. It is an older mill and has compliance issues. There have been some upgrades to the facility; however odor continues to be a problem. Stedman noted we do not regulate this facility, but we do receive complaints. When we receive complaints we forward them to Ecology’s Industrial Section. Cirulis has been by the facility on numerous occasions and noted violations of the opacity standards. We have spoken with Ecology and explained that when we are in the area, we would take opacity readings and send the information on to Ecology for follow up.
Doherty noted Port Townsend Paper going out of business would mean loss of a lot of jobs for that area. Stedman stated we have no intention of shutting them down. We will just be responding to the complaints and leaving it up to Ecology as to what type of action to take. We are hoping this will lead to better operation of the facility, not closure. Johnson noted they have just gone through a restructuring and no one wants them to shut down. Doherty asked if EPA could help. Stedman explained they are grandfathered in, and honestly it would be best if they only made operational improvements. If they change out the technology, they would have to go through New Source Review with Ecology. If they do this, they have to meet Best Available Technology.
Doherty moved to allow ORCAA to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with Department of Ecology Industrial Section with regards to Port Townsend Paper. Doherty added staff needs to be available if there is a multi-state/federal agency consultation about assisting the mill with cleanup technology. Harwood seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
Washington Asthma Initiative
Stedman stated he would like the Board’s blessing to allow the agency to sign on as a supporter of the Washington Asthma Initiative. The initiative is working on strategies to reduce asthma in the state of Washington. It doesn’t cost anything to join, but would show our support for the initiative.
Doherty motioned to allow ORCAA to join the Washington Asthma Initiative. Kingsbury seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 11:15 a.m.
PRESENTED BY
Richard A. Stedman, Executive Director
APPROVED BY:
The Majority of the Board